There are always three ways; your way, their way, MY WAY. Things will go a lot easier for you if we just do it my way in the first place.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
It's the throttle plate shaft.
EP wins the prize.
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
From Dust.......
The good news is it's not burnin' any oil right now. Weird.
Update: Brought the bug home last night and fired it up this morning in the barn to start troubleshooting it.
Problem #1 - no oil pressure showing on the gauge! Swapped out the electric sending unit for a mechanical (tube) gauge to verify pressure. 40lbs at idle. Good to go.
Problem #2 - There is a fuel issue. The engine requires pumping the accelerator or choking as it warms up to keep it running. I am convinced it is the preheat tubes being clogged as the carb becomes ICE cold shortly after starting and the tubes are warm only about 1/3 of the way up toward the carb.
Problem #3 - Got one cylinder burnin' oil. Doesn't start until the engine has been running about 3 - 4 minutes. A little weird, but not a big deal on a bug no matter what it is.
Problem #4 - oil cooler and roof scoop are not in the car. Gotta call the PO and have it shipped.....
Forgive my being cryptic here, but something is afoot. I will not discuss any plans in greater detail, but a pending acquisition lies below.
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Jeff Cooper on Failure To Stop
In Jeff Cooper's words:
As time passes we discover that there are a good many readers who have not been to school and who are puzzled by our reference to "The Mozambique Drill."
I added The Mozambique Drill to the modern doctrine after hearing of an experience of a student of mine up in Mozambique when that country was abandoned. My friend was involved in the fighting that took place around the airport of Laurenco Marquez. At one point, Mike turned a corner was confronted by a terrorist carrying an AK47. The man was advancing toward him at a walk at a range of perhaps 10 paces. Mike, who was a good shot, came up with his P35 and planted two satisfactory hits, one on each side of the wishbone. He expected his adversary to drop, but nothing happened, and the man continued to close the range. At this point, our boy quite sensibly opted to go for the head and tried to do so, but he was a little bit upset by this time and mashed slightly on the trigger, catching the terrorist precisely between the collar bones and severing his spinal cord. This stopped the fight.
Upon analysis, it seemed to me that the pistolero should be accustomed to the idea of placing two shots amidships as fast as he can and then being prepared to change his point of aim if this achieves no results. Two shots amidships can be placed very quickly and very reliably and they will nearly always stop the fight providing a major-caliber pistol is used and the subject is not wearing body armor.
However, simply chanting "two in the body, one in the head" oversimplifies matters, since it takes considerably longer to be absolutely sure of a head shot than it does to be quite sure of two shots in the thorax. The problem for the shooter is to change his pace, going just as fast as he can with his first pair, then, pausing to observe results or lack thereof, he must slow down and shoot precisely. This is not easy to do. The beginner tends to fire all three shots at the same speed, which is either too slow for the body shots or too fast for the head shot. This change of pace calls for concentration and coordination which can only be developed through practice.
This technique is also commonly referred to as "Body Armor Defeat" and I can imagine a 9x19 makes like a BB gun against the stuff while a .45, though not penetrating at all, will often introduce sternum to spinal column yielding at least temporarily satisfactory results.
I have to add here that the ongoing century spanning experiment with handguns chambered for one .38 caliber cartridge or another of one is surely by now conclusive in the negative. With the possible exception of the .357 and .38 super.
Friday, January 05, 2007
Bee Extermination
Or you can leave a running vacuum cleaner hose near where they enter end exit. Takes about a week, but they eventually all fly too close and get sucked into the vacuum of doom. You will probably have to empty every day depending on how optimally you place the end of the hose. Works like a charm. My neighbor killed off a huge hive living under his crawl space this way; he blocked all the exits (vents) except one and placed the hose there.
Thursday, January 04, 2007
Monday, January 01, 2007
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
So much for Apple's Hype...
Got a little surprise in the stocking this year. MrsJAC thought I might like this thing. And I migt, but it has been a pain in the ass so far.You've all seen the Apple commercials and heard the ignorant comments from Apple owning acquaintances who don't know any better, "It just works!"
I go back a long way in PC's - back to TRS80's and C64's - and I have to say I haven't hadt to deal with anything that was such a pain in the ass to get working as this thing in the last 7 years since I was installing a tape-drive backup system.
Yeah, it's that bad. I had to force it 'mass media storage drive' onto a different drive letter assignment. In contrast, my walmart Rio player "just worked!" and didn't have all the bullshit "protected content" and "works only with I-tunes" garbage.
But, it's working now and sounds pretty good. Apple must have a good digital to analog converter cause the little bugger does a fine job in that department, and it is extremely portable. I just I hope I don't forget about it and run it through the washing machine.....
Update : It's chuggin' along pretty good now, but I have to dump the "temp" directory anytime I want to synch it. Those guys at Apple must be geniuses......
Monday, December 18, 2006
Sunday, December 10, 2006
New Math
This poor bastard made the mistake of talking to a person instead of a computer:
[Start of Call]
[on hold with Verizon Wireless customer service]
Trent (Verizon): Hi.. Hey, George?
George: Yes.
T: Hey I'm really sorry about that wait there. Hey, I got Mike on the line. He's my supervisor over here and uh, he'll take care of you from here on out, okay?
G: Thanks.
T: Alright.
Mike (Verizon): Thanks Trent. Good evening George, how are you doing this evening?
G: Great, except that I've been trying to resolve this for two calls and over 45 minutes now.
M: Okay, well lets see what we got here, I'm definitely sorry that uh, that you've had to call in that many times. Let's see, ummm, looks like you're questioning some kilobyte usage that was done while in Canada?
G: Well, let me just start out with a basic question.
M: Okay.
G: Do you recognize that there's a difference between “point zero zero two dollars” and “point zero zero two cents”?
[pause]
M: Point zero zero two dollars?
G: Do you recognize that there is actually...
M: ...and point zero zero two cents.
G: Yes, do you you recognize there's a difference between those 2 numbers?
[pause]
M: No.
G: Okay, is there a difference between 2 dollars and 2 cents?
M: Well, yeah, sir..
G: Well okay, is it.. is there a difference between .002 dollars and .002 cents?
M: .002 dollars and .002 cents.
G: Yes, is there a difference between..
M: Sir, sir, they're.. they're both the same if you, if you look at 'em on paper-wise
G: No.. they're not, actually. It.. is .5 dollars the same as .5 cents?
M: Is .5 dollars..?
G: Is half a dollar..
M: That would be.. That would be 50 cents.
G: A half a dollar.. is it the same as a half of a cent?
M: No.
G: Right.
M: Okay.
G: So, clearly, two one-thousandths of a dollar, which is your rate for airtime as I now understand it, uh, your rate per kilobyte in Canada is two one-thousandths of a dollar. But two one-thousandths of a dollar is different than two one-thousandths of a *cent*. What I was quoted was .002 cents. That's two one-thousandths of a cent per kilobyte.
M: Mmhm. okay...?
G: I specifically asked the rep. I said, “Are you saying it's .002 dollars or .002 cents?” because I .. *I* recognize that there's a difference. Just like there's a difference between that half a dollar and half a cent.
M: Okay.
G: There's a difference between .002 dollars and .002 cents. Your rate in Canada is .002 cents.
M: Correct.
G: Uh, it's point, point... Well okay, it's not true, it's .002 dollars. You're still quoting me .002 cents when in fact it's .002 dollars per kilobyte. So, if you want to charge me .002 cents, I'd be happy to pay the bill, the problem is I was charged .002 dollars per kilobyte.
M: Okay, so if you take.. okay.. do you have a calculator with you?
G: Yeah, I do.
G: Okay, take this uh, 71.79.
G: Yeah.
M: And divide that by uh, 35,893 you should come out with .002
G: Yes, and what units should it be? Dollars or cents?
M: Well that's per *kilobyte*.
G: Right. And is it dollars or cents per kilobyte?
M: Well, let me take a look here for ya.
[time passes...]
M: [looking up rates] We're.. we're in Canada..
[time passes...]
M: Hold on one second for me..
[time passes...]
M: [mumbles something about Canada]
[time passes...]
G: For the record, what I was quoted before I went to Canada, I called because I'm on an unlimited plan in the United States and I thought I might be paying more when I go to Canada.
M: Right.
G: What I was quoted was .002 cents. That seems to be what you believe is the rate is .002 cents. Unfortunately, your computer system charged me .002 dollars per kilobit, er, per kilobyte, so my point here is the confusion is on your side, and the first rep I spoke to, the second rep I spoke to, and including you, in calling “.002 dollars” “.002 cents”, that's a hundredfold difference just like one dollar is 100 times different than1 cent.
[time passes...]
M: Okay... looking at the pricing here for ya.
M: Okay.. for data.
M: National roaming access coverage in Canada is .002 per kilobyte cents.
G: Can you say that again?
M: It's .002 cents per kilobyte
G: .002 cents per kilobyte. So you just quoted me again; your price is .002 cents per kilobyte
M: Correct.
G: Okay, so now I'd like you to translate my 35,893 kilobytes into dollars if you would.
M: Okay, if you take .002
G: Cents, remember, cents.
M: Times 35,896. 71 dollars and 79...
G: No, that would be 71 cents because you started with a rate per *cent* and multiplied by the kilobytes, so that would be 71 cents. I'll tell you what the problem is here, is you, you're.. the original person I spoke to *before* I used my airtime...
M: Mmhmm.
G: Up to and including you, are quoting .002 dollars per kilobyte as if it's .002 cents per kilobyte and they're not the same, so I assumed that you guys knew how to do math. No offense here , but i assumed that you knew the difference between .002 cents and .002 dollars. And it sounds like there's still some confusion about that. .002 dollars is two one-thousandths of one dollar, or two tenths of one cent, which is very different than two one-thousandths of one cent. It's one hundred times different. [pause] I'll give you a brief example: If you're selling your car and I said I'm gonna give you twenty thousand for it, and I show up with 20,000 pennies, we're not speaking the same language. If you quote me .002 cents it's not the same as .002 dollars. So, when you just did the math .002 times 35,893, you came up with 71 cents. You didn't do the translation from cents to dollars, which would be... you'd have to.. uh, divide by a hundred, so then you get .71 dollars: 71 cents, So, I do understand, even though it seems like maybe *you* don't, that the rate is, I now understand: .002 *dollars* per kilobyte. But that was not what i was quoted, and that's not how I used my airtime because i thought it was... I thought it was cheaper than it actually turned out to be, because I was misquoted.
M: Mmhm.
G: I also had no context. The previous person i was speaking to said I should have had some context because i know what the united states rates - I *don't* know what the United States rates are, because I have an unlimited plan. I don't have to be concerned about the United States rates.
M: Mmhm.
G: So. It all comes down to me being misquoted, and it's hard.. it, would, it, it.. At the time, I, I said there could be some confusion here, so I asked the customer service rep, “Can you please write that down in the notes, that you quoted me .002 cents?”
M: Mmhm.
G: And she did.
M: Right, and I see that.. I see not only one, but I see several reps that have put it in here.
G: Right. So I.. I hope, it sounds like you may not actually see what the problem is yet, but ah..
M: Well, I've been working here 2 years sir, and I've been a supervisor for almost a year and a half.
G: Okay..
M: Okay? Umm, ya know, I'm going by what is.. what is documented here in the system.
G: Right.. so can you tell me then if, if the rate is as you quoted .002 cents per min.. per kilobyte, and I used 35,893.kilobytes, how much should I be charged?
M: By, by.. The way this is calculated? Seventy-one dollars and seventy-nine cents.
G: You did your math wrong, so what I'm saying is you did... bring up your calculator.
M: I.. I've got the calculator in front of me, sir. If i type in .002 and multiply that by 35 thousand, nine hundred...
G: But wait! but but.. Here's the key.. I know, but here's the key: What does the .002 represent? Cents or dollars?
M: It's cents, sir.
G: Okay, .002 cents...
M: So basically you're paying... you're paying two tenths of a penny [pause] per kilobyte. If you want to look at it that way.
G: Two tenths? hold on, hold on.. two tenths of a penny...
M: Mmhm.
G: ...would be .2 cents. You quoted me .002 cents. Do you see what I'm saying? [pause] Two tenths of one cent...
M: Mmhm.
G: ...would be point two cents. You quoted me .002 cents.
M: That's correct.
G: there's a difference between .2 cents and .002 cents. They're 100 times different. So which is the real rate?
M: .002 sir.
G: .002 what?
M: Cents per kilobyte!
[pause]
G: So you just said it was .2 pennies and then you also said it was .002 cents. Those are 2 completely different numbers. They're 100-fold different. Quoting someone .002 cents per kilobyte is different than .002 dollars per kilobyte. I... I don't know what else more I can tell ya. The math... the math on the bill is right if it's .002 dollars per kilobyte. It was quoted .002 cents.
M: George, hold on one second for me okay?
G: Sure.
Link for the full conversation is here.
Friday, December 08, 2006
So, My brother recommended a movie t'other day....
What the hell, indeed.
The thing starts off with government thugs trying to bone Natalie Portman who is saved by a masked dude with a lisp and uses the "v" sound alot. Mildly irratating, but not a movie killer.
There follows some pretty good mayhem and a few gratuitous shots at US foriegn policy, faith portrayed as the watch word of an oppressive government, the bad guys siting God to justify their legitimacy. It's hollywierd; nothing surprising here. In fact, one pretty much can't take in a movie w/o a minimum undercurrent of such tripe. Still, not too over the top for hollyweird, but I'm startin' to wonder when the professed merits of this flick start to overshadow the leftist hollyweird pap. Good thing I didn't hold my breath.
It goes off the deep end when a closet queener comes out of his closet and the scene shifts to said closet (secret room) wherein photographs of men fondling, and biting? one another get some big screen time. Lest we forget, the buttholebandit also has a fourth century copy of the goatherd scribe's koran (illegal - but he appreciates the "beautiful images and poetry"). This fag is soon martyred.
At this point I call the BrokeBackBlaster to give him a good cussin' for wasting nearly an hour of my life. My wrath exorcised, I feel much better and sit back down with one finger firmly on the FFWD button. Maybe Natalie will have a wardrobe malfunction..... Nyet.
The movie goes on to raise a pair of lesbo's to sainthood complete with a scene of one's obviously small minded bigoted parents crying over what was "only the truth".
One is martyred and is the inspiration for both the heroine's and the main character's respective epiphanies which leads to the primary motivation for the climax of the movie.
The premise is solid though absolutely buried beneath wagon loads of stereotypical leftist manure, and wading through 90 minutes of George Soros' Gay Party Propaganda is not my idea of entertainment. My brother on the other hand....
"V" for Vendetta sucks. Skip it. You have been warned.
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Joke o' the Day
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Monday, November 20, 2006
Inquiring Minds Want to Know
Thermonuclear weapons will loose the bulk of their punch after a few years if the tritium isn’t replenished (12 yr halflife). The tritium acts as a catalyst during the fusion reaction, and the yield suffers greatly when there is not enough present.
The fission detonator on an h-bomb would still be of great interest to a terrorist, perhaps. But it is a military necessity to replenish the tritium in our warheads.
Another issue is that the casings for nukes degrade somewhat over time, even in ideal storage conditions. There is a lot of debate over the likelihood of a failure on timescales under 50 years, but from the military’s perspective, they want to be sure that the bombs detonate when launched. So they’re evaluating and reconditioning old warheads every day.
And finally, newer models are lighter, more reliable, and more versatile… at least they were up until the changes in the NPT precipitated by the India/Pakistan dick waiving contest.
thimscool
Thankyou thimscool for stepping up here. Normally Bill or EP handle this sort of inquiry, but they seem to be laying down.....
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Cannon Fodder
My Way News - AP: Giuliani Takes Step Toward '08 Bid
Moderate Republican he says. Gun grabbin', baby killin', fag lovin' newyork liberal says I. And the best way I have seen since McCain to get the conservative base to stay home in 2008.
Saturday, November 11, 2006
1) Achieve Power 2) Consolidate Power 3) Punish Your Enemies
to now go out and issue a lot of subpoenas and go on a wild payback
time?' Well, payback is unworthy," he said. "Doing oversight doesn't
mean issuing subpoenas. It means trying to get information."
BREITBART.COM - Waxman Set to Probe Areas of Bush Gov't
Sure, a republican elitist politician is much the same as a democrat elitist politician, but there is a not insignificant difference (which republican elitist politicians always forget at their peril) that the democrat models for governance are Mao, Castro, and Uncle Joe Stalin.
Never doubt that this stuff will be reported as "government investigators" and not "democratic commitee heads".
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Frenchy Feelin' Froggy. Jews Say, "HopTo!"

French troops almost fired at Israel jets: minister | International News | Reuters.com
Now that's what you call a BAD IDEA. Last I heard of any wargame with the jewboys, they waxed our asses. The french need to be constantly reminded they are....well, french.
The Israeli action looks like a warning to me. Whatever Froggy did the Jews didn't like will probably cease now.
Saturday, November 04, 2006
Friday, November 03, 2006
Sometimes I Think Vets are Brainless Walking Egos
Barbaro shattered his right hind leg in the May 20 Preakness and has been in intensive care at the New Bolton Center ever since. He underwent surgery to stabilize the right leg on May 21, then developed laminitis in his left hind leg in July, prompting Richardson to remove an estimated 80 percent of his left hoof
Now that's good thinkin' right there. He can't stand on this one so we'll just cut the other one off.
I have to say here that I'm not "in" on the details of Barbaro's case and that there may be some things about it that would make this acceptable procedure. I wonder though.
I saw a case yesterday where a mare had become laminitic (foundered) in her right front hoof. This is a very painful, life threatening condition where P3 (the bone inside the hoof) becomes detached from the front (mostly) inside surface of the hoof and begins to sink down through the bottom of the hoof. If you walked on your toenails (like horses do) it would be like having a toenail peeled off until the bone poked through the skin and that was what you had to walk on. Sound painful? It is. Remember horses can't sit or lie down for any extended period of time. There is no relief for them. A veterinary clinic had treated the right front surgically (properly), all the while refusing to make an intervention on the unacceptable load the left hoof was having to bear while the right was useless. Can you guess what happened? Correct. The left went to shit, too. It damned near always happens if you don't act properly to prevent it, and sometimes even when you do. This poor girl was tossing her head upward, using its decelerating mass to fleetingly take weight off her front hooves for even an instant of relief. Its been eatin' at me ever since I saw it. Somebody needs a beatin'.
There is a proven procedure for dealing with laminitic horses. It was developed by a farrier turned veterinarian and is so successful it is mind boggling. I haven't seen it fail, yet. Some horses are beyond help and nothing will save them, but this is a small percentage. It requires the skills of a highly skilled and specialized farrier (usually trained by the above mentioned vet), several sets of x-rays, highly technical machined shoes, timely intervention, and some not unreasonable horsecare by the owner. Some more severe cases require a minimally invasive surgical procedure performed by a vet to allow the procedure to work. It's a step by step damned near guarenteed to work thing. Some of the same things apply to preventing laminitis in a noninujured opposite foot. Connect the dots! Do the math! I don't understand folks sometimes.
Some educated idiots won't take advice from folks with enough experience to know what they are doing. Ego over horsecare.






